''Galium triflorum'' (also known as cudweed, sweet-scented bedstraw, and fragrant bedstraw) is a herbaceous
plant
Plants are predominantly photosynthetic eukaryotes of the kingdom Plantae. Historically, the plant kingdom encompassed all living things that were not animals, and included algae and fungi; however, all current definitions of Plantae exclu ...
of the family
Rubiaceae
The Rubiaceae are a family of flowering plants, commonly known as the coffee, madder, or bedstraw family. It consists of terrestrial trees, shrubs, lianas, or herbs that are recognizable by simple, opposite leaves with interpetiolar stipules a ...
. It is widespread in northern Europe (Scandinavia, Switzerland, Russia,
Baltic States), eastern Asia (
Kamchatka
The Kamchatka Peninsula (russian: полуостров Камчатка, Poluostrov Kamchatka, ) is a peninsula in the Russian Far East, with an area of about . The Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Okhotsk make up the peninsula's eastern and west ...
, Japan, Korea,
Guizhou
Guizhou (; formerly Kweichow) is a landlocked province in the southwest region of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Guiyang, in the center of the province. Guizhou borders the autonomous region of Guangxi to the ...
,
Sichuan
Sichuan (; zh, c=, labels=no, ; zh, p=Sìchuān; alternatively romanized as Szechuan or Szechwan; formerly also referred to as "West China" or "Western China" by Protestant missions) is a province in Southwest China occupying most of the ...
), the Middle East and Indian subcontinent (parts of North India and Nepal), and North America (from Alaska and Greenland south to
Veracruz
Veracruz (), formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave), is one of the 31 states which, along with Me ...
). The plant is considered a noxious weed in New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut and Massachusetts.
''Galium triflorum'' grows on the
forest floor
The forest floor, also called detritus, duff and the O horizon, is one of the most distinctive features of a forest ecosystem. It mainly consists of shed vegetative parts, such as leaves, branches, bark, and stems, existing in various stages ...
, spreading vegetatively by means of
stolons. It has
whorled leaves and single fruiting
peduncles rising above basal
rosettes. There are six bracts in a whorl below the peduncle. Each peduncle has three fruiting structures, each having a single fuzzy ball. Stems are square in cross-section. The entire vine does not feel very coarse, but it is rough enough to stick to clothing.
Flora of China v 19 p 139, ''Galium triflorum''
/ref>
This species is sometimes confused with ''Galium odoratum
''Galium odoratum'', the sweet woodruff or sweetscented bedstraw, is a flowering perennial plant in the family Rubiaceae, native to much of Europe from Spain and Ireland to Russia, as well as Western Siberia, Turkey, Iran, the Caucasus, China ...
'', a species with traditional culinary uses.
References
External links
Cincinnati Nature
Jepson Manual Treatment
USDA Plants Profile
Photo galleryCalifornia Flora taxon report, ''Galium triflorum''Blackfoot Native Plants, Potomac Montana, sweet-scented bedstraw, ''Galium triflorum''Czech Botany, Sweet-scented bedstraw
triflorum
Flora of Europe
Flora of Asia
Flora of Northern America
Flora of the United States
Flora of California
Flora of Mexico
Flora of Veracruz
Plants described in 1803
Flora without expected TNC conservation status
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